UV Epoxy
 

Can any of you recommend a UV Epoxy that isn’t tacky, or slimy feeling after you set it with the light. I am looking for clear, hard and smooth when set with the light.

Solarez is really nice. And the deer creek diamond hard isn't tacky at all. I've found loon still has that tack to it after curing. What light are you using? I started using a leak detection light and it wasn't powerful enough to set the resin properly. Switched to the rechargeable loon light and didn't have as many problems with the sheen you get using loon flow or thin

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i have used most of them mentioned above.1 Very important thing ,is having a strong battery..

I like the Solarez. You can get a 3-pack of small tubes, thin, gel, and flexible through Amazon for $23. Cheap enough to try them out without breaking the bank. I use the thin for sealing fly heads, and the gel for a smooth, glossy finish on a ribbed chironomid. Haven't found a use for the flexible stuff yet- but I will!

Guy just told me he tried Bondic UV from Canadian Tire. He said less tacky than the Loon product

http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/bo...-0671446p.html

I don't understand, so if the light isn't strong enough then the glue doesn't full cure fast enough leaving it tacky? Isn't UV light just UV light.

Didn't like loon for that reason; just picked up some solarez but haven't used it enough to have an opinion. Lots of my flies that I used loon on I'd leave on the window sill for a while.

I wound up waiting until it was sunny out,take outside for a minute and hit with magnifying glass. Worked for me.

Every one I've tried has been tacky to various degrees. If you put a thin coat of Sally Hansens Hard As Nails over the final coat of UV it eliminates all the tackiness.

Thats want I have been doing but it just adds another step to the process, delay in time to getting the flies done.

The resins are UV wavelength specific. The flashlights are not all the same wavelength. The SUN has all the wavelengths...that is why it works the best

This is a great product for flies. Goes rock hard and is clear

There is a difference between a diagnostic light e.g. for finding leaks on an air conditioning system, and a curing light: for gel fingernails for the ladies or curing resin on flies. The curing lights are much more powerful than a diagnostic light thus they cure faster and harder than a diagnostic light.

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So how do you find out which light you have?

OO OO OO. I know the answer to this one. I guess I even literally wrote a book about it (although nobody really reads graduate theses)

I was about to ask about your light source and then likely suggest something more powerful.

The sliminess and tackiness is because there are non-reacted resin molecules floating around

UV light is indeed UV light. When light interacts with a substance, there are 3 possible basic reactions: it can be transmitted, reflected/scattered, or absorbed.

There are also 2 critical metrics in quantifying light---total power and power density. A 100W incandescent light bulb is pretty bright to look at. A 100W laser will permanently ruin your eyes. This is because the a laser has a much higher power density, with the light energy basically focussing on a pin point.

The resin curing is a photochemical reaction. This means that the photon is absorbed and the energy is used to convert the resin from liquid to solid.

When light is used as a tool, there are 2 basic categories: diagnostic uses or therapy/treatment. As a rule of thumb, diagnostic purposes use a much lower power intensity than therapy.

For the sake of diagnosis, like leak detection or the ones used in forensics, the purpose is to give a widely dispersed beam to cover a great deal of area. As well, diagnostic purposes are usually photophysical reactions leave the illuminated area unchanged, usually just using fluorescence of phosphorescence. These lights are only meant to react to a thin layer of external compounds, only penetrating 0.1-0.2mm

As a real world example, think of the x-rays. Diagnostic x-rays are much lower powered compared to the x-rays used to treat cancer---they are the same x-rays though. Not only are the treatment x-rays much more powerful, they are focussed, giving a much higher power density and penetrate deep into the body

While the UV resin look clear(ish), it is absorbing the UV photons. The penetration of photons into matter is an exponential decay. In order to penetrate more than 0.2mm, you need an exponentially more powerful light source. Sometimes, this means focussing several lower powered light sources or using a single powerful light source. For fly tying, a single powerful source is much more practical.

I use a 7W single LED source. It takes about 10 seconds with fresh batteries to fully cure about 1mm Loon Thin UV resin.

Without having a spectrometer, it is hard to tell actual output.

There are 2 ways to figure it out. First, what kind of batteries/power source do you have? If the light source runs on watch batteries, it is unlikely to generate enough current to convert to photon energy.

Secondly, what is the dispersion of your light source. Diagnostic sources are intended to cover a large surface area. The Loon rechargeable light source uses a single LED with diameter of about 6cm at about a 10cm distance. The LED flashlight is about 3cm in diameter. It is a very tight cone.

Take a look at this flashlight If you look at the pictures, you will see how the light source disperse very quickly---almost 180 degrees from the source.

High powered LED (especially UV capable) are still quite expensive. The LED in the Loon light sources are probably $5 compared to pennies per LED in the diagnostic sources. LED themselves are not all the same---the LED with a tighter dispersion pattern will be more expensive.

You can still use a diagnostic light source to cure UV resin, it just takes a lot more time---probably around 45-60 seconds for 1mm of resin instead of 15 seconds with purpose-built light source.

This here is some sciencey goodness that is making a difference, so informed now. Thank you.

I haven't had much luck with the wee leds and flashlights. At least not in comparison to the kind of cure you get in sunlight.

Just happens I have a tortoise cage in my basement with one of these installed on it:

https://www.amazon.com/Exo-Terra-Sol.../dp/B00101JIFG

Works like a charm.